Conversations
by High Horse
Summary: Eli has dinner with Natalie and complications ensue.
1. Chapter 1

**Conversations**

**Summary: Post S5.8. **Eli has dinner with Natalie and complications ensue.

**Rating: **T= PG 13

**Spoilers: **Anything aired through Season 5 (USA) is fair game.

**A/N: **The rekindled romance between Ei and Natalie sparked my interest. My spin in three chapters.

**Disclaimer: **CBS holds the power and the rights to The Good Wife and all characters. No harm is intended.

* * *

A few minutes earlier, Eli almost bailed on his dinner date with Natalie. Now after kissing her, she was stepping closer to initiate a kiss of her own. She whispered softly, "does this mean you are going to join me for dinner?"

Eli just nodded and then stepped over to pull out Natalie's chair. He took his seat and she picked up her glass of wine, She toasted their first date.

"To us," he repeated.

The conversation and the evening flowed better after their rocky start. He asked her why she said she was in such a great mood and she explained the nature of the case and the failed deportation of her friend. Natalie steered clear of the encounter she had with Howard Lyman fearing it could spark a swift response from Eli. They stayed on lighter subjects, including Natalie's work in New York and Eli's new position as Peter's Chief of Staff. When they finished off the last of their cheesecake and coffee, Eli offered to drive Natalie back to her hotel.

He tipped the valet when his dark blue Porsche Cayenne was brought up to the restaurant's entrance and opened the passenger door for Natalie. The valet had turned on both the heater and the seat warmers for them and the car's interior quickly warmed against the cold night air.

"I didn't take you for an SUV guy," remarked Natalie.

Eli grinned as he revved the engine and pulled into traffic. "I spend a lot of time in town cars with drivers. I just wanted a solid all wheel commute vehicle that had town car luxury but was safe in the winter."

The rest of the short drive was quiet until they neared the hotel. "Would you like to come up for a nightcap?" asked Natalie in a somewhat halting soft voice.

"I would, but I am going to have to ask for a rain check," replied Eli. He was terrified. He wanted Natalie but he also respected her. He did not want to push her away after losing her for over two years. Instead, he pulled the Cayenne into a metered parking space about a block from the hotel. He kept the car running to keep them warm.

Natalie looked at him with a questioning glance, but before she could form a question, he spoke up.

"I want to kiss you good night, but I really did not want to do so in front of the hotel. I had a great night and I am very sorry about balking at the beginning of the evening."

Before he could say any more, her lips were on his and her hand gently stoked his jaw. She pulled back slightly with a wide smile and then dove in for another kiss. Eli was awestruck. It was all he could do to silence his brain and just react to the beautiful, brilliant young woman in his arms.

Natalie was wise enough to stop at an appropriate time. She held his hands and told him to stay in touch. She explained that she usually got home about 8:30 each night. She wanted him to call whenever he could and she promised to see him again when she came to Chicago on business or to see her family. The next time, they would not have to run in to each other by accident.

Eli nodded repeatedly. It seemed that he was still rather speechless from the night's events. He kissed Natalie tenderly and then pulled his SUV back on to the road. He turned in at the hotel and the valet helped Natalie out of the Porsche.

Eli drove home in an unfamiliar and yet exhilarated mood.


	2. Chapter 2

**Conversations, Ch 2**

**Summary: Post S5.8. **Eli has dinner with Natalie and complications ensue.

**Rating: **T= PG 13

**Spoilers: **Anything aired through Season 5 (USA) is fair game.

**A/N: **The rekindled romance between Ei and Natalie sparked my interest. My spin in three chapters.

**Disclaimer: **CBS holds the power and the rights to The Good Wife and all characters. No harm is intended.

The next morning, Eli was in his office at six am, which was early by anyone's standards. He powered through the papers and briefs on his desk, but his mind was rewinding the prior night's events. At 7:45, he was jarred from his thoughts by the ringing of his cell phone. It was Natalie.

"Hey"

"Hi Natalie," he responded.

"I had a really great time last night and just wanted to let you know that I made it to the airport this morning."

"I miss you already," remarked Eli.

"Me too."

"Fly safe."

Eli clicked the END button on his phone and thought of how lucky he was. He looked ahead at his schedule trying to find times when he could jet to New York or possibly see Natalie around the holidays. He was able to finish two more hours of work before he was summoned into Peter's office.

Marilyn walked in to Peter's office right behind Eli and Peter motioned for her to close the door.

"Eli, we have another potential situation, regarding your personal life," Peter stated. Eli immediately went on the defensive and glared at Marilyn.

"I don't know what this is about Eli," she stammered. "I am in the dark here."

Peter continued, "you know that we have all talked about Natalie Flores and your connection to her lobbyist job in New York. Well this morning, Matt Becker called me. He saw you with Natalie last night and was very concerned about your romantic entanglement."

Eli tried to control his inner rage and his facial expressions. He swallowed hard and decided the best course of action was to let Peter play all his cards before defending himself.

"Who is Matt Becker?" asked Marilyn, determined to weigh in on the evolving drama.

"Matt is a pollster that we have worked with in the past. He and Eli found the silver bullet when we ran against Wendy Scott-Carr and that bullet was Natalie Flores. Matt is concerned that the political party would see some sort of collusion between Eli and Natalie in manufacturing the original issue of her undocumented status. He was surprised to see them in public, kissing, and thought I needed to get ahead of the story."

"Eli, are you sleeping with Natalie?" asked Marilyn.

That was the final straw. Eli unleashed his fury at Marilyn and Peter both. "How dare you! I told you once and I will tell you again, my personal life is my personal life. There is no political agenda. We had dinner. We have been friends for over two years. I am not sleeping with her, it was just dinner."

Peter listened intently, and then in a very calm quiet tone, he told Eli that it was not just dinner. "I know that you care deeply for her. Matt mentioned that you were cautious about exposing her undocumented status during the campaign. Even now, I can see how careful you are at defending your position."

For once, Marilyn remained quiet. She watched the interaction between the two men as they dealt with the sensitive topic. Her mind raced through the possible ethics issues that could arise if reporters or political groups pushed this topic. What was Eli's true role in the exposure of Natalie? Is she using him for political gain? Why was was he so defensive? Was Eli in love?

Eli let Peter finish. He composed his response but he also knew that Peter was right. "I can see that some people may trace the friendship back to when we exposed Natalie's citizenship status. Do you realize that she could have been deported back to a country that she left when she was only two years old? Can you imagine being ripped out of college and sent to a country that you never lived in as an adult? She lost everything as a result of what we did."

Eli continued, "you should know that I did take legal steps to help her and her father back then. Alicia and Diane helped defend her and support her. They provided her with an internship that eventually led to jobs in Washington and New York. I had not seen her since the night we won the Attorney General's race. Then, she dropped in to meet Alicia while Marilyn and I were on the advance trip and I saw her."

Eli stopped talking. That was enough information to share. He sat back down in the chair and waited.

Peter thought about what he said. Eli had a solid track record of protecting him and it was clear that any conflict caused by Eli's relationship with Natalie would be purely accidental. "You may want to reach out to Natalie. She might need to let her boss know that she has close personal contacts with Alicia's law firm and the governor's office. If she deals with this now, it will protect you both."

With that, Peter stood up and thanked Eli and Marilyn for their time. They both exited the office and headed back to their respective spaces. Eli was still wound tight from the exchange. He agreed that Natalie should know about the discussion, but it was not something that he felt should be done over the phone. He was also wary that the discussion could kill any hope for them to build a relationship.


	3. Chapter 3

**Conversations, Ch 3**

**Summary: Post S5.8. **Eli has dinner with Natalie and complications ensue.

**Rating: **T= PG 13

**Spoilers: **Anything aired through Season 5 (USA) is fair game.

**A/N: **Some creative license with the airport details. Last chapter. Thanks for reading!

**Disclaimer: **CBS holds the power and the rights to The Good Wife and all characters. No harm is intended.

* * *

Eli found a flight that afternoon. He texted Natalie asking if she could meet him at La Guardia airport around 5 pm. Terminal B. She texted back a yes and then asked if everything was okay. He followed up with his flight number and airline and then slipped his phone into his pocket.

He asked his admin to clear his afternoon and drove off to Midway airport. Eli tried to work while he waited for the flight, but his mind was elsewhere. He always kept his personal life just that, personal. He did not sneak around or try to hide it, he just didn't share much. But his feelings for Natalie broke all the rules.

The flight was uneventful and he landed an hour prior to his meeting with Natalie. His plan was to have a drink before heading down through security. He turned his phone on and immediately heard the tone from an incoming text.

"I got off work early and I am waiting near baggage claim 4."

Eli shifted gears. His heart was racing and yet the crisis manager in him could not predict the outcome of the evening. He passed through security with his briefcase in hand, looking like the rest of the business travelers that frequented La Guardia. He did not see Natalie at first.

Natalie saw Eli immediately and headed towards him. She did not want to leave any doubt in his mind about her feelings. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.

"Hi," he responded when she pulled back slightly from the kiss.

"Hi. So we really needed to speak in person?" Natalie asked.

"I thought it would be better," Eli replied.

"Ok then. It is a bit early for dinner, follow me and we will find a quiet place to talk." Natalie led Eli up a flight of stairs to an observation area. It had large windows looking out on to the main runway and lots of seating. They found a padded bench away from the travelers who were trying to catnap between flights and sat down next to each other.

"I am no stranger to the ruthlessness of politics," Eli started out. "I can hold my own in most discussions and I am usually one of the principles in calling people out. However, this morning, the governor asked if we were in a relationship. Apparently someone I know, saw us kissing at the restaurant last night. This person knew my role in exposing you for working for Wendy Scott-Carr. He told the governor that complications could arise and he should get ahead of the situation."

Natalie sat quietly, holding Eli's hand, and listening intently. "Wow, we finally go out on an actual date and this is the backlash? What did you tell them?"

Eli thought about what he had said to Peter and Marilyn. How he and Natalie had been friends and that he had helped her with some legal issues along with Diane and Alicia. He replayed the conversation for Natalie. He added that Peter seemed to suspect that the friendship was more romantic in nature.

Natalie remained silent, thinking about the recent days. She still was holding Eli's hand and squeezed it gently, urging him to go on.

Eli needed to explain his real fear. "As I said, I can deal with most anything, but my real fear is the effect it might have on you. Don't get me wrong. I know how strong you are. But I remember the look on your face when the news cameras followed you at DePaul. I caused that mess and it made me sick to watch it play out. More importantly, I had the power to stop it and I didn't. Now, we have the ability to stop it and I am really at a loss about what to do. I cannot put you through that again."

"So our prior interaction over my citizenship is the only issue?" she asked.

"No, I am sure that the governor's ethics manager, Marilyn, is also concerned that your ties to the Outsider Group might continue to sway my decisions as they pertain to the governor. The whole speech on redistricting... I changed my mind partially because I wanted you to attend Peter's speech."

Natalie stood up and began pacing. Eli feared that she was about to walk away. After what seemed like an eternity to Eli, she pulled him to his feet and wrapped her arms around him. "I understand your fears Eli," she stated quietly. "But I don't have a political agenda in being with you. And I am not alone in facing the media this time."

"No, you're not alone," he replied and he actually meant it.

"Let's continue this conversation over dinner. I know a decent place here in the terminal."

Eli followed Natalie to the Jet Restaurant and they were able to grab a booth. He ordered a scotch and she got a sparkling water. They ordered sandwiches as soon as the waiter came back with their drinks.

"There is more, isn't there?" she asked.

"Well," he responded, "they suggested that you may want to talk to your bosses about your relationship with Alicia's firm and also your potential connection to the governor's office. That way, if the media pushes on the Outsider Group, they can respond as needed."

Natalie looked Eli in the eye and laughed. "I was attracted to you back when I thought you were a party planner because there was this intrigue about you. Now, even though I have been following your career, I don't think of you as a power player. I was not attracted to you because of your title and I still don't think of it as a factor."

Eli looked a bit hurt. Most women were drawn to men in powerful positions. And yet, he was drawn to Natalie because she was so real and down to earth. She watched him use his power to help her but she had not really asked him for it.

Their food arrived and they fell silent while they ate. They were both somewhat exhausted by the days' events. Natalie was the first to speak.

"Eli, thank you for telling me all of this in person. I will speak to Joe as soon as I can get in to see him. I need to let my dad and aunt know about this too, in case they get reporters at their doors. Otherwise, I think I am okay for now. Except that I have one more question."

Eli nodded and waited for the other shoe to drop.

Natalie simply asked, "are we really just friends or do you want a relationship?"

Eli let out the breath he had been holding. "I want to build a relationship with you."


End file.
